iLL Manors (Blu-ray)

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Let me first start with a warning, if you’re hoping for an evening that isn’t too traumatic, don’t watch iLL Manors. However if you want a movie that’s innovative, challenging and has a lot of ambition (particularly for a microbudget British movie), it’s quite a ride.

Written and directed by Ben Drew – aka Plan B – it’s a film where he tries to push the envelope and go beyond the usual ideas of the Brit flick, in the same way as he’s done with his music. That’s signalled from the outset, where he truncates 20-odd years of a young man’s life into a few minutes, telling the story through the lyrics of a rap song (which includes samples from the score to Disney’s Beauty & The Beast, no less). It’s unconventional but surprisingly effective. [Read more...]

iLL Manors Trailer – Ben ‘Plan B’ Drew’s directorial debut


At the age of only 28, Ben ‘Plan B’ Drew is busy being quite the renaissance man. He’s taken the music world by storm, proved a capable actor in the likes of Adulthood and Harry Brown, and now he’s written and directed iLL Manors. The movie is out June 6th, and now the full trailer is available. Here’s the synopsis: ‘A unique crime thriller set on the unforgiving streets of London, iLL MANORS follows six disparate lives, all struggling to survive the circles of violence that engulf them. There is ex-dealer Kirby, who has just been released from prison, thug Ed who will stop at nothing to find his missing phone, troubled Michelle who is just looking for her next hit, young Jake who finds himself drawn to the local gang, Chris, who seeks revenge, Katya, who is desperately trying to escape this foreign land, and Aaron, our main protagonist who is just trying to do the right thing. Narratively linked through original music from Plan B, the film is a visually stunning and emotionally impactful experience, laced with street-wise humour. Ground-breaking in its approach, iLL MANORS proves to be one of the must-see films of 2012.’